Stand Out From The Rest

Being Part of the Tar Heel Battalion

See how interesting college can be when you're a part of Army ROTC. You'll be a college student first and foremost, just like the rest of the student body, but there's a key difference: you'll have even more opportunities to succeed.

These opportunities include Field Training Exercises (FTXs) in the spring and fall where Cadets build their teamwork and leadership skills. Cadets also participate in Physical Training (PT) on a regular basis to keep up their strength and endurance.

In addition, the Tar Heel Battalion offers opportunities to participate in optional training, events and activities that can be fun and challenging.

What ROTC Adds to Your Schedule

-          One to three hours per week of Leadership classes, which can count toward any undergraduate degree at UNC as elective credit hours.

-          A two hour Lab each week, where we put on our uniforms and conduct hands-on leadership and military training.

-          One to three hours per week for physical training, based on where you are in finishing your degree.

That’s what’s required. Of course, there are optional events and activities that you can participate in based on your interests.

A Pretty Normal College Life – Myth vs. Reality

Question: Don’t I have to get up way early and exercise, go to the woods a lot, and wear a uniform all the time?

Answer:  Once in awhile, once in awhile and no.

We do physical fitness training.  We do it for several reasons.  First – IT’S GOOD FOR YOU.  Secondly, it relieves stress.  Finally, there are things we do in the Army that require strength, dexterity, and fleet-footedness.  We don’t train you to be a tri-athlete (unless you want to be).   We don't need you to bench press 300 lbs (unless you want to).  We do want you to learn how to live healthy, take care of yourself, reduce your chances of heart disease, stroke, bone and muscle degeneration and prevent injury.  A healthy lifestyle is a big consideration when you interview in corporate America as they see the link to lifestyle with their cost for an HMO and lost time if you are out sick or injured.

“So, how much exercise do I have to do?” 

Answer:  First year Cadets are required to do one hour of Physical Training (PT) a week.  Sophomore Cadets are required to do two hours.  You will sign up for the PT time that best works with your schedule.  We offer Cadet-led, Cadr- supported PT at 4-5 different times each week so you can find sessions that fit your school schedule.  If you are a member of a university sports team, we’ll work with you during the semesters that you are playing so you can do both ROTC and NCAA sports.

OK, now the woods thing.  IBM, Xerox, and other Fortune 500 companies pay big bucks to send their managers and others to “camps” where they learn team work, problem solving and decision making skills.  You get all of that here for free.  We do two labs (usually on a Saturday morning) where we will go to a local area or maybe Duke Forest and work on skills such as navigation and orienteering, or maybe to a leadership reaction course.  Or maybe we'll go practice our marksmanship, or go rappelling.  Whatever it is, it won't be wasting your time, you won't just be standing around…you'll be leading – either yourself or others. 

Once a semester we travel out of Chapel Hill for the weekend.  It could be to an Army base or a National Guard training post.  We'll practice those corporate leadership skills we've learned in the classroom and see how they apply to the Army.  To spice things up a little, sometimes we’ll fly in Army helicopters to get there or back.  We pack a lot into three days (Fri – Sun) and when you get back you’ll be ready for a pizza, a coke, a shower and your bed; but you’ll sleep the sleep of the confident knowing you have done your best, exceeded your personal expectations and moved that much closer to being a leader.

Finally, the uniform thing:  Even people who work at McDonalds have a uniform.  We issue you everything you need for the program.  That includes a field uniform and boots and a dress uniform.  You do not need to wear your uniform to all of your classes each week.  You do not need to pack up your cool clothes and wear your uniform everywhere you go.  You have a field uniform for those times when you are going to get dirty or you could tear up clothing (rappelling, walking in the woods, etc).  We issue you a dress uniform for those special occasions when we get together as a unit (the Military Ball, our Dining In, awards ceremonies, commissioning. etc).  We do set other days that we wear our uniform.  Your peers, the cadets who are in leadership positions, will designate what days you wear your uniform.

How do I know that this program is right for me?

Duh!…YOU DON’T.  You test drive a car before you buy it.  Walmart has a return policy if your clothes don’t fit like you thought they would.  So why should you guess about your future?  You might change your major three times before you graduate.  College is all about finding out what you want to do in the future.

We are all about helping you find out what your best courses of action are for your future.  Let’s face it…THE MILITARY ISN’T FOR EVERYBODY.  Some don’t like the hours, some don’t like the leadership responsibility, some don’t like the excitement, some don’t like the adventure.  We recognize that the Army isn’t for everybody.  That’s why we only want a handful of people a year out of over 15,000 students.  We are looking for about 20-30 people each year who are willing to step up to the plate and take a swing.  Out of that, it’s likely that about 2/3 will have what it takes – mentally, emotionally, physically, academically and socially to be outstanding leaders in the Army.  The others will take what they learn here and apply it in corporate America and never forget the friends they made nor what they learned about themselves in this program.

So, how do you know if you are one of the people we’re looking for here at the Institute of Leadership?  You don’t and neither do we.  That’s why we have the no obligation – “Try it free for two years” plan.  Having the intestinal fortitude to sign up for the course is the first step in proving to yourself and to us you have what it takes.